When Medics Are Idiots

A writer over on the Feministing community blogs went on a trip to the gyno for one of her Gardasil shots and ended up getting a nice lesson in Even People Who Are Supposed to be Experts in Their Fields are Idiots 101 by her nurse.

“The HPV Vaccine prevents four types of HPV.” He lists them, tells me how they cause most cases of cervical cancer and genital warts. “But do you know how many types of HPV there actually are?” I respond with 30-40, having just read the Gardasil brochure in the waiting room. But he disagrees: “Nope. There are actually over 100. So, even though this vaccine prevents four, you have to watch out for ninety-six other ones.” Except, wait, no the brochure is right. According to the American Cancer Society , there are over 100 types, but sixty cause warts on non-genital skin, leaving forty affecting the anal and genital area. Why, then, would he so subtly imply that when engaging in sexual activity I should beware of 96 types of HPV?

Then he basically tells her that condoms are ineffective against preventing  STDs… too bad the International Conference on AIDS and the National Institutes of Health, and every major national health organization pretty much refute that. But then there’s this doozie:

After some more discussion (although by this point, while he was talking, I was mostly just staring at him in shock), after he had led me to the natural conclusion that there’s no real way to be safe from STDs, he told me this: “Women shouldn’t have sex like men. You’re in college, you know what some women are doing….If he’s not Mr. Right, then why are you with him anyways?”

Either he’s some right-wing lunatic posing as a medical guy, or he’s trying to be the sassy gay friend, giving advice, but not actually good advice…

Anyways, read the rest of AJohnson’s story at My Gynecology Nurse Lied

Beyond Girls Gone Wild

21 people taking part in an oral sex competition were arrested in the Greek island of Zakynthos. Police say that 6 British men and 6 Greek men, and 9 British women were charged in the incident which was taking place on a  beach.

Gross.

The women have been charged with prostitution and the men with encouraging obscene behavior (not for purchasing sex?). The prosty charge is because they were going to be paid. The whole shebang was being taped to then later get posted all over the Internets.

Apparently, this island has an amazing, wild party scene, but this is a bit far from innumerable Jello shots.

Dear Creepy Women at the Gym…

We have a problem. No matter what time of day I go, no matter where in the locker room I disrobe, no matter where I avert my eyes, a trip to the locker room usually ends in some sort of emotional scarring because of you.

Now, I have no problem with nudity. I’m not going to judge you whether you look like Jessica Alba or the mom from What’s Eating Gilbert Grape. That’s what a locker room is: a place where you can change out of your smelly clothes that captured all of your nastiness when you were unleashing hell on the elliptical machine, without judgment. What I do have a problem with is the fact that I’ve seen some crazy shit.

So in order for us to coexist in the locker room, I’m issuing an official decry to the women at the North Hollywood Bally Total Fitness. Well, half of the women who go there already are on the up and up, but the other half — who probably don’t read anyway — need to learn a little something about how the locker room is supposed to go:
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Newsarific - July 8

China, fatness, the Queen’s tea, and a very uncomforable bra, after the jump.

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How not to get knocked up

photo by once and future

Let’s say you don’t want kids at this very moment — perhaps you’re like me and scared of breaking children. But don’t forget that you may eventually give in to that whole biological clock thing and want one.

So how about you not screw up your reproductive organs now so that 5 years from now you can pop out some kids? According to some Dutch researchers, who followed 9,000 women who had received In-Vitro Fertilization treatments to see if they would naturally just get pregnatized. The BBC reports that one in every 7 were able to get knocked up but apparently drinking four or more cups of coffee each day cut chances of conceiving by 26 percent. Dude.

Granted, this really just applies to women who already have problems getting knocked up, but if you know you have to deal with it, probably best to wean yourself off the bean, or at least cut your coffee intake. The guy at Starbucks is probably sick of seeing your mug, anyway.

Researchers also found that drinking alcohol at least 3 times weekly would give the same effects… basically, don’t be this person:

The researchers estimated that a 36-year-old woman who smoked, drank too much coffee and alcohol and was overweight, and who had been through three cycles of IVF, would have a 5% chance of a natural pregnancy. If she was a healthy weight and did not smoke or have too much caffeine or alcohol, her chance would be 15%.

Coffee Worsens Poor Fertility {BBC News}

Linkage: “F” Word Edition

photo by wonderjunkie

While I’m on vacation (well, visiting family) in New York, I haven’t been able to post too often…OK, dayyys. So this morning, I fired up all my fave sites to see what was happening in the world and within about 2 minutes, I’ve been reminded, “oh yeah, the world sucks if you have a vagina.”

So here’s today’s required reading for all of you who believe that men and women should simply be equal in society. You know, how you should be able to wear a mini skirt, and not get groped by some random nasty dude on the street. Or how you should be promoted at work because you’ve been working hard and you’re qualified to move up. That whole being able to buy birth control thing. You know; that. 

Check out some lovely feminst propoganda after the jumpies

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